Aspects of the present disclosure relate generally to access features of armored fiber optic cable, such as flat cable. The access features may facilitate opening a jacket of the fiber optic cable to access optical fibers in a cavity of the fiber optic cable.
So-called “flat” fiber optic cables typically include an oblong cross-section with two longer sides on the top and bottom, and two shorter sides extending therebetween. The shorter sides are often rounded and the longer sides are generally flat. In some cases, such as due to manufacturer molding techniques and design choices, a flat cable may have somewhat rounded longer sides, or the longer sides may include a dip or a waving surface. The shorter sides may be flat. The flat cable cross-section may actually be oval or elliptical.
Interior to the flat fiber optic cable, typically two strength members, such as glass-reinforced plastic rods, extend in parallel with one another along the length of the cable. Between the two strength members, the fiber optic cable includes optical fiber(s), such as multiple fibers connected together as a ribbon or stacks of ribbons. RPX® Gel-Free Ribbon Cable, manufactured by CORNING CABLE SYSTEMS LLC is an example of one type of flat fiber optic cable.
The optical fibers of flat fiber optic cables may be accessed by shaving or cutting into a top portion of the jacket. In some cases, the strength members may be sized to facilitate controlled shaving and removal of the top of the jacket by providing a limit to the depth of the shave. Once cut into, the top of the jacket may be removed and the optical fibers may be pulled through the opening, such as for splicing to a tether cable or for other reasons.
Flat fiber optic cable may be armored. However, in practice, the armor may make accessing the optical fibers cumbersome. Top-down access may be blocked by the armor and walls of the cavity, between the strength members and the cavity, may be hard to access and then difficult to penetrate. It may also be difficult or time-consuming for a field technician to get under or separate the armor from the jacket.
In some cases, multiple tools or specialized tooling as well as complex operating procedures may be required to gain access to optical fibers of an armored flat fiber optic cable. In other cases, rip cords may be located between the armor and the cavity. But such rip cords may not be deep enough within the cable (due to the armor being in the way) to sufficiently cut into the cavity, and such cables may still require penetration of large thickness of jacket material with tooling to access the optical fibers. As such, a need exists to improve accessibility of optical fibers of flat fiber optic cables that are armored.